Chapter 82: Morning
The midday sun was bright. The warm sunlight cast a blurry shadow through the floor-to-ceiling windows. In the hazy glow, his eyebrows and eyes were clear and handsome, giving her the illusion of a peaceful life.
Gu Zhi slowly opened her eyes, squinting to adjust to the dazzling sunlight. She felt a pressure on her chest. The boy’s arm was resting on her waist, like a child who liked to hug a doll to sleep.
Gu Zhi didn’t mind. It actually made her feel a little familiar, reminding her of her days in elementary school. Looking back, that time seemed to be the most peaceful in her life.
It was just a pity that the boy hadn’t chosen to leave with her back then. Otherwise, she would have found the answer long ago. But it didn’t matter… it wasn’t too late.
The boy had grown up so much, even a little taller than her. She couldn’t control the dosage of the drug and was worried that it wouldn’t be enough to make the boy unable to resist. So at that time, she had been ruthless and had added more than double the adult dosage.
She didn’t know when he would wake up, but it didn’t matter.
Gu Zhi turned to face the boy. The boy, his messy, fluffy hair disheveled, was sleeping just a few inches away from her. Although his sleeping face was uneasy, his delicate features still fascinated her. If he never woke up… she seemed to be able to accept it, Gu Zhi thought to herself.
Suddenly remembering that there were still ingredients left in the refrigerator, Gu Zhi had a whim and thought about whether to cook a pot of porridge for the boy when he woke up. The thought of the boy smiling when he woke up to the rich aroma of porridge made her feel at ease. Something in her bones seemed to be lurking in the corners. The smile that inadvertently appeared on her lips made her become the gentle Gu Zhi again.
Gu Zhi hadn’t spent too much effort on cooking, but she was still pretty good at it. She soaked the rice in advance for half an hour, took out the remaining carrots and shiitake mushrooms from the refrigerator, and prepared to dice them and add them to the porridge to enhance the aroma.
The sharp blade fell on the cutting board with a crisp sound. The afternoon sun shone through the gauze window in the kitchen, which was used to dissipate the smoke and dust, and fell into the sink, reflecting brightly on a few drops of water.
Gu Zhi was stunned for a moment, the blade accidentally missing its target and landing on the soft flesh of her fingertip. Blood quickly oozed out, dyeing the wooden cutting board red.
“Hiss…”
Gu Zhi hissed in pain, but her gaze was still a little dazed. She looked at the blood on the cutting board. The something that had just been lurking began to stir again. She suddenly realized something.
She seemed to have slept for a long, long time. There was no tossing and turning all night, no waking up from nightmares as usual. She had slept very peacefully, so much so that she hadn’t realized these things when she woke up.
Gu Zhi reached out and tried to touch the corners of her mouth. The faint curve that remained made her a little hard to believe. Perhaps she had been smiling too much in front of others for too long, and she had already become a little confused about the authenticity of her smile.
…
The ingredients and fine rice in the clay pot were mixed together and simmered into a porridge over a low fire. The rice porridge in the bowl was thick and fragrant. When Gu Zhi pushed open the door with the clay pot, the boy on the bed was already awake. She saw half of the boy’s face shrouded in the sunlight pouring in from the window. A fat orange cat was lying in the boy’s arms, stretching its waist, looking lazy.
“I’ve cooked some porridge. You were drunk yesterday and slept for so long. You must be hungry. Get up and have some.”
Gu Zhi pulled a chair over and used a wooden spoon to scoop a spoonful of porridge and feed it to Su Yu’s mouth.
“Did I drink a lot yesterday?”
Su Yu frowned in confusion. His memories of last night were scattered like withered flowers. He tried to recall the specific details, but it was difficult. He only remembered that it was very hot… very hot, as if he had been thrown into a furnace. Later, the air conditioner must have been turned down, and he had barely survived.
His thoughts surged, and Su Yu was soon attracted by the aroma of the porridge. His Adam’s apple rolled up and down, but he still wanted to ask the question in his heart.
Gu Zhi smiled and replied, her gentle smile hanging on the corners of her lips. “Yes, yesterday… you started by wanting to have a drink with me, but then you seemed to get drunk and insisted on drinking. You drank more than half of that bottle by yourself. It took me a lot of effort to get you to bed.”
“Why aren’t you eating? Is it too hot?” Gu Zhi saw that Su Yu was not moving and thought he was afraid the porridge was too hot. She gently blew on it, and the steam quickly dissipated. She fed it to Su Yu again. “Hurry up and try it. You can’t be hungry.”
“You’ve been cooking for so long, of course I have to eat it.”
Su Yu directly took the bowl of porridge from Gu Zhi’s hand and took a small sip. The hot, thick porridge was fragrant, and the dry and sour feeling in his mouth quickly faded.
“Really, you’re still embarrassed. You won’t let me feed you.”
Gu Zhi was stunned for a moment, her hand still frozen in mid-air, a flash of emotion in her eyes, but she still smiled.
“Meow!”
A lazy meow sounded, and the orange cat on Su Yu’s lap suddenly jumped up. Its seemingly round body was surprisingly agile. It jumped into Gu Zhi’s arms and rubbed its head against her abdomen, looking very affectionate.
“Really, you can even escape from your cage. You’ve really grown up.” Gu Zhi seemed to be used to the orange cat’s habits. She smiled and held the cat in her arms, lovingly stroking its back. “Are you hungry? You eat so much every day. I’m really worried that one day you’ll be a little pig and won’t be able to walk.”
Su Yu’s gaze was dazed, and he forgot to swallow the porridge in his mouth. He inexplicably thought of the time when he had just met Gu Zhi. He had pounced into her arms, just like this clingy orange cat.
“You have a cat too, sister?”
“Yeah, I didn’t plan on getting one. I don’t know how it got into the neighborhood. It was just wandering around my doorstep. One day, I saw it hiding under the eaves during the rain, looking pitiful, so I brought it in. Then I just kept it.”
Gu Zhi played with the cat in her arms, smoothing its back, and said with a smile, “It’s quite boring living alone. It’s nice to have a cat. It’s just that I’m sometimes too busy to take care of it. Fortunately, it’s obedient.”
The orange cat lay in Gu Zhi’s palm, as if it smelled something. It licked Gu Zhi’s palm. Su Yu subconsciously looked over and saw the wound on Gu Zhi’s hand. He remembered that it wasn’t there before.
“Sister, how did you hurt your hand?” Su Yu’s tone was a little worried. “Why didn’t you bandage it?”
Gu Zhi patted the orange cat’s head, not letting it lick the wound. She looked up at Su Yu. “It’s nothing. It’s not bleeding anymore.”
“At least put a bandage on it. When I was injured before, you always insisted on putting medicine on it.”
“Okay, okay, I’ll go get one now. I’ll also get some cat food. The little guy must be hungry.”
Gu Zhi helplessly compromised, complaining that Su Yu had grown up and was no longer cute. She put down the orange cat and walked out of the room. When she came back, she was holding a collar.
She poured cat food into the bowl, and while the orange cat was eating, she put the collar on its neck, even pulling on it a little, as if to check if it was secure enough.
“Do you have to wear a collar at home?”
“What’s wrong? Do you think it’s not right, Xiao Yu?” Gu Zhi stood up and looked at Su Yu, her expression normal. “If you don’t keep an eye on your pets, they will run away. Although it’s a stray cat, I’ve had it for so long. If it secretly runs away, I’ll be very sad.”
“That’s not what I mean. I just think…” Su Yu looked at the orange cat eating with relish by the bowl and suddenly felt that his words were a bit redundant. He shook his head. “Nothing. I just suddenly remembered that there was also an orange cat at my elementary school. I fed it several times, but then it disappeared. It was probably my fault for not taking good care of it.”
Su Yu then asked, “What’s its name?”
“It? Its name is Xiao Chan.”
Gu Zhi gently flipped the name tag on the orange cat’s neck, revealing the name. “See? The ‘Chan’ from ‘cicada’.”
“Xiao Chan?” Su Yu repeated, smiling, understanding the meaning of the name. “So its name is Xiao Chan. No wonder it’s so lively.”
He quickly finished his small bowl of porridge and put down the bowl. “Sister, I should go back now.”
“You’re leaving already?”
Gu Zhi silently took the bowl, her tone a little regretful. “You used to cling to me all the time. Now you’re leaving after just a little while?”
“I’ve been out for so long this time. My roommates are asking me where I’ve been. It’s probably not good if I don’t go back.”
“Okay, then. Your clothes should be almost dry. I’ll go get them for you.”
Gu Zhi didn’t try to stop him. She left the bedroom and went to the balcony. She stopped at the corner where he couldn’t see her.
This was not her original plan. She was supposed to have put enough medicine in that bowl of white porridge to make the boy sleep for two whole days. Then she would have severed all his ties. From then on, this would be his home. He wouldn’t need anyone but her.
But in the end, she hesitated and threw the prepared powder into the sink. It was because of the wound that she had forgotten to bandage in her haste.
What kind of good person are you pretending to be? a voice in her heart said.
Since he’s yours sooner or later, why not now?
She suddenly felt a little regretful, wanting to rush into the room and grab his neck, forcing the medicine down his throat. In a daze, her hand lost its strength, and the porcelain bowl fell to the ground with a crisp sound, shattering into several pieces.
“What’s wrong, sister? Are you okay?”
A rustling sound came from the bedroom. Su Yu seemed to be getting up from the bed.
“N-nothing. I accidentally dropped the bowl.”
Gu Zhi replied loudly, picked up the pieces, and threw them into the trash can. She then walked towards the clothes hanging in the sun.
